Effort Foundry Hosts Its Third Customer Appreciation Day
Effort Foundry transformed into a learning center for its customers on September 13. Seventy-one “students” gathered at the Southmore Golf Club here in Bath for Effort’s latest installment of Foundry School.
After an introduction and three-hour tutorial on metal casting basics, the attendees were transported to Effort’s facility for some hands-on learning. Effort employees, donning special orange T-shirts, demonstrated all steps of the pouring process and provided guided tours of the Foundry. The group then basked in the warm September sunshine with refreshments and a Q&A session.
Back at the golf club, attendees enjoyed a buffet lunch while CEO Charlie Hamburg delivered an update on the expansion project. All Foundry School graduates received a complimentary paperweight, T-shirt, and unique cast as a souvenir.
Effort Secures NIAC Approval
Effort was audited by the NIAC (Nuclear Industry Assessment Committee) in the early summer and received formal approval in October.
Since 1994, NIAC’s 125 company members have performed auditing services at the highest industry performance standards while eliminating the redundancy and costs associated with duplicate supplier audits. Membership is limited to suppliers with 10CFR50 Appendix B or equivalent Department of Energy quality programs.
“Model to Metal“ in 2 Weeks
Effort recently introduced its rapid prototyping process to allow projects to move from “model to metal“ in as little as two weeks.
The process begins with a computer-generated solid model, after which the necessary foundry engineering, like gating and risering is added to the model. The model is then sent to a third party who develops a deposited sand mold and core, which are returned to Effort to use conventional close-and-pour methods to cast the part.
In addition to reducing the leadtime from 12-16 weeks to just 2-3 weeks, rapid prototyping also eliminates all pattern costs.
“This capability is a tremendous step forward,“ said President Bill Easterly. “Being able to cut leadtimes substantially and costs while maintaining the level of quality we demand brings real benefits to our customers.“
Effort Foundry Adds Austenitic Manganese Steel to Its
Alloy List
Austenitic Manganese Steel is a specialty steel that usually contains approximately 12% manganese.
Developed over 100 years ago and originally called “Hadfield Manganese Steel“ (after its discoverer, Sir Robert Hadfield), Manganese Steel is a versatile alloy with applications in the wear-resistant steel arena, as well as certain applications that require non-magnetic steel with initially high tensile properties under conditions where work-hardening is not induced in service, such as retaining rings for turbo alternators.
Properly heat treated by austenitizing, followed by water quenching, the grades listed in ASTM A128 (Fig. 1) produce a metastable austenite phase with a face-centered cubic lattice and strengthening from interstitial carbon and substitutional manganese (photomicrograph Fig. 2).
Heat-treated Type A produces a 0.2% offset yield strength – typically 40-50 ksi—with a Brinell hardness number of 240. Effort Foundry has concluded over 12 months of process controls to assure the manufacture of quality Manganese Steel. This includes new molding media, new core and mold washing techniques, analytical standards, furnace lining, and special ladles. In the cleaning/finishing departments, we have implemented special heat treatments, blasting, and qualified weld procedures.
Effort Foundry has produced impellers, wear-resistant parts, and turbine retaining rings from various grades of Manganese Steel.
Please contact our sales department to request a quote on this remarkable steel!
Effort Foundry Wins Ben Franklin iXchange Manufacturing Achievement Award
Effort Foundry was recognized last month by the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania (BFTP/NEP) for their manufacturing success. At its annual iXchange conference on May 10, Ben Franklin presented Effort Foundry with the Manufacturing Achievement Award, distinguishing the company’s “proven track record of success and an unbending commitment to achieving and maintaining an excellence in manufacturing.” Effort CEO Charles Hamburg and President William Easterly accepted the honor at the Lehigh University Zoellner Arts Center in Bethlehem.
“Effort Foundry accepts this award with a high degree of humility,” Easterly said in his remarks. “Not often is a foundry, considered by many to be on the lower end of the manufacturing world, singled out for such a prestigious award.”
Created as a non-profit corporation in 1983, BFTP/NEP links companies with business and technical experts, universities, funding, and other resources to help them prosper through innovation. The organization helped Effort establish a new banking relationship that enables the company to transform its facility into a state-of-the-art foundry. According to Easterly, the company is in the final stages of constructing an 8,000-square-foot machining and inspection building, part of a capital plan that also includes an upgrade of the melt and pour department and the building of a new office facility. The company grew to 69 employees in 2010 and expects further revenue increases.
“With in-house engineering and patternmaking facilities, expertise with steel alloys, and the ability to create castings across a wide range of sizes, Effort has moved far beyond the reach of its remaining competitors,” according to an article in the Ben Franklin News. “Effort’s comprehensive management information system includes job costing and pricing capabilities that allow for accurate and timely decision-making.”
The iXchange, northeastern Pennsylvania’s premier business networking event, attracts more than 500 technology entrepreneurs, businesspeople, venture capitalists, economic developers, political leaders, and regional influencers from Ben Franklin’s 21-county service area. In addition to the 17th annual Innovation Awards, the conference featured networking sessions and a keynote address delivered by Jack Uldrich. An advisor to Fortune 1000 companies and an established author, Uldrich shared practical tools and methods for implementing innovation in organizations, a message that resonates deeply with Effort’s leaders.
“Our commitment is to the future,” Hamburg said. “We are laying the groundwork for one of the most basic manufacturing industries—metal casting—to remain viable in the Lehigh Valley by supplying good-paying jobs, producing steel castings to support the world needs in power generation and all applications requiring quality and integrity.”
Read more about what's new at Effort >
Archived Events
New Casting Dimensional Layout Facility
Effort Foundry’s new QC center now features a Portage Model 60A digital layout machine. … read more >
Foundry School 2009
On September 15, Effort’s plant supervisors hosted the second Foundry School, held at Gaetano’s in Bath, PA. … read more >
